Thrift Schooling

Hope you are having a relaxing weekend! Kids Having Fun at Philpott Lake! More "homeschool" related posts coming soon. As for now, we will be resting and relaxing before our busy month of September with NVable Items. Check the schedule and come on by and see us! 

We just finished Laura Ingalls Wilder's book, Farmer Boy  today. I cried. I can't tell you the last time I cried at the end of a book, but this one did me in! I won't ruin the ending for you, but I will say that things certainly have changed over the years. The character and integrity of ten year old Almanzo was certainly one to be admired and would challenge many young boys today.  One of my first grader's favorite parts of this book was when Almanzo entered his milk-fed pumpkin into the county fair. My children were on the edge of their seats, caught up in the suspense, wondering if he would win the blue ribbon against all the other entrants!  County fairs were a big deal back then. Everyone took a break for a few days and head out in their horse and buggys filled with produce, goods and livestock. The community gathered together to spend time with their families, friends and neighbors. When I heard that Franklin County, Virginia was bringing back the forme...

To keep up with his math skills this summer, I had my son practice with  UberSmart Software . This downloadable program ($24.95) is for Windows based computers. My son has been working with the  UberSmart Math Facts  program to rehearse his addition and subtraction facts and to begin learning his multiplication facts.     I currently use Abeka Math for my two boys and have been using it with my oldest from the beginning. Personally, I am a fan of the memorization and the method of teaching used in that program. It encourages quick answers and memorizing of math facts. With my oldest, I used to sit with him and go through flash cards. The curriculum pretty much encourages this every day, I can't say that I was entirely faithful with it, but I would try! The challenge began though when my second son entered the picture. At first I would try to sit them both down and go through he cards. Fail. Obviously, the oldest would answer them all correc...

Yes, we did school this week, it just went a little different than the past two weeks in which we have officially been "in school." On Monday morning I realized that our tomatoes were in abundance so I put aside our boxed curriculum for the day and told the kids that we were making spaghetti sauce! I'm glad my kids like to help in the kitchen or this task would have been a drudgery. Fortunately, it was quite pleasant. I sent the boys out to the garden to pick a few more ripe tomatoes. Then they weighed what we had (on our baby scale turned kitchen scale), a total of 21 lbs. Not a huge amount for someone who does a lot of canning, but for us, it was plenty! The kids then "washed" and got the tomatoes ready for our handy dandy sauce maker .  It's pretty cool. You don't have to hull, peel or blanch, just put it in like a juicer and it separates the skin and seeds out for you! The kids chopped the tomatoes into quarters, mushed them down, cranke...

As parents it is important to know what our children are eating. Recently, I have been trying to make more meals and snacks from scratch to have more control over what my kids are actually consuming! With more and more parents attempting to provide their children with healthy alternatives to GMO foods we are hungry for healthy alternatives that we can feel good about! Soy Bites exclusively by Crum Creek Mills  are a GMO-free snacks that parents can be confident about. Pack them in a picnic lunch, or set them out in a bowl within everyones reach. Keep them on hand for those long road trips or pack them in your purse on field trip days. Here's a perfect munch food; healthful, convenient, single-served that is great for work, home, school or play. There are so many ways to enjoy Crum Creek Mills Soy Bites. They're delicious on their own, of course. You can also use them for dipping hummus, light cream cheese, a bit of peanut butter, jelly or whatever else you lik...

Why keep your kids fenced in on such a beautiful, sunny day when you can get outdoors and play some mini-golf? When we arrived at Adventure Landing in Winston-Salem today we saw quite a crowd! Apparently we weren't the only ones who wanted to practice our swing! Fortunately, there were three (at least from I could see) different courses to choose from! We chose a par 2 and got started right away!  Even with such a crowd, everyone dispersed to different courses so you never really felt like you were on top of anyone, or rushed. Surprisingly, my kids (ages 4-7) didn't get tired throughout the 18 hole course. They just wanted to keep on going! My seven year old was the only one with a hole in one, yeah, I didn't even get one! My six year old just kept on moving through and his favorite part was the waterfall. He was continually concerned the ball would fall in the water, fortunately it never did! Now, my four year old didn't quite understand the whole "not...

What exactly is Kombucha? After reading Kombucha Revolution, I have come to the understanding that it is basically fermented tea. And not just any ordinary tea but in the first sentence of this book, the author calls it the "elixer of life" to detoxify the body, help with digestion and focus the mind. He even states that it reverses the symptoms of cancer. A bold claim? Maybe. But I could certainly be convinced. The closer man gets to nature and the elements of it's creation, the better it is for the body. God created tea leaves and there are healing elements within them. Actually, in our house, we turn to herbal teas before the medicine cabinet on any given day! So, it has been interesting reading about Kombucha and this whole new aspect of tea brewing! This book introduces the reader to the history of Kombucha and the author's experience with it. Seventy-five recipes then follow including different infusions and preparations of the mixture. The only reason we ...

 For summer entertainment, we recently received a CD from the  Wizzy Gizmo  company entitled  Audio Drama One: Who Created Everything?  by Chris Del Aguila and Justin Cummins.  $14.99 This audio CD is a 22 track recording sharing in song and story about the Creation account in Genesis. Rather than each track containing an episode, all tracks of this CD are one complete story with songs that in total lasts about an hour! Beginning with an intro song (with sort of a Value Pac/ Ghoti Hook feel to it,) you are introduced to Wizzy Gizmo. The story begins with the professional sounding narrarator introducing you to the kids of Sunnyville during their summer vacation.  You are first introduced to Eli, the new kid in town who meets friendly neighborhood kids who then whisk him away to meet the eccentric inventor, Wizzy Gizmo. This guy loves to invent all kinds of creative items such as spoons that can fence and toasters that can danc...

  Are you looking for something fun to do with the whole family?   Adventure Landing is The Place to Play! They have something for everyone, from kids to adults so the whole family can enjoy all of the excitement that Adventure Landing has to offer. Adventure Landing is pay-as-you-play, so you can enjoy one or all of their attractions!  Stay cool during these final summer days and get splashed in their Bumper Boats! Practice your putting skills on their Miniature Golf Courses or perfect your gaming skills in the Family Arcade. Adventure Landing specializes in birthday party celebrations.  They Go BIG for Birthdays!  I grew up in a city, so mini-golf on the weekend was not an out of the ordinary occurrence. Well, now that the closest cities are about an hour drive, Mini-golf and the such are just rare treats on occasion!  Even though the official school year has begun the weather is still outdoor activity worthy and I plan on taking advantage o...

West Virginia is only a hop, skip and a jump away, yet our family had not yet ventured over the border to see what camping experiences it had to offer! (Though we had heard the rumors.) The familiarity of routine had set in, and even though we thrive off of camping trips, the extent of our camping had been limited to our backyard (or if we REALLY wanted to 'get away' we might head to the campground a few miles down the road!) So, when our friends suggested that we load up our van full of a weeks worth of necessities and head over with them to their favorite WV camping spot, Blue Bend, we jumped at the chance! I guess we just needed a little motivation. Certainly an experience to write home about and totally satisfied this homeschool mom's dream school-cation.  Wading in the creek for hours. Letting the kids (young AND old) catch and cook crawdads for lunch! Scenic rides through the mountains.  Finding out from the locals fun landmarks such as this...

My kids started school last week and the public school kids in our area began today! Whether your kids are homeschooled or go to private/public school, staying organized is always key! Right now, Thrift Schooling readers can save 20% on Label Daddy labels for all your Back to School needs! Label Daddy is a great solution for labeling your belongings! Remember to label all clothing, sports equipment and other personal belongings your kids bring to sports, camp, day care, and other places. Label Daddy labels keep your child's belongings from getting lost or mixed up with others. These labels are super durable peel-and-stick washable labels. They are washer/dryer and dishwasher safe and UV resistant! Label Daddy labels are also fun and attractive. You design your own labels! Pick from tons of colors, sizes and logos, including Marvel characters, MLB, NBA, and NHL team logos. There are other sport and fun logos to choose from also!  Their exclusive laminated coating gives ...

Most of us have seen the Schwan’s truck at some point in our lives driving up and down the streets of our neighborhood. But has one ever turned down your driveway and delivered food right to your door?  For over 60 years, Schwan's Home Service has provided superior frozen foods with convenient home delivery. Why not give it a try? Maybe you just had a baby and would love some easy meals delivered to your doorstep. Or maybe a family member has just been released from the hospital and some quick meals are needed to feed the family in an easy and convienent manner. Schwan’s foods are flash frozen at the peak of freshness and flavor. Choose from USDA Choice meats, wild-caught seafood, flavorful skillet meals, Grade A fruits and vegetables, plus our heritage ice cream, distinctive desserts and much more.    For family members with special dietary needs, the following options are available: - No gluten ingredients - Vegetarian - No sugar added - ...

Sigh. A week ago I shared a post of all the upcoming goodies I was planning on blogging about this week. Um, I think only two of them were actually fulfilled. Sorry. Even though it was a great and quite fulfilling week, it was extremely busy. Let's just say that last night, once my kids were all in bed, I followed shortly after, I was  ex. haust. ed!! To help me stay on task and actually provide you with a semi-interesting post aside from reviews and giveaways, (which are fun in their own right!) I have decided to join up with the  The Homeschool Mother's Journey , at least for this week anyways! (I don't want to make anymore promises!!) This way you can see a small glimpse into our week and if you click the link above, you can see what other homeschoolers have enjoyed (or battled!) throughout the week as well! IN MY LIFE THIS WEEK I canned veggies from our garden. For the first time! Yup. On our way to self-sufficient living. Let me tell you that it is a p...

Last year, I introduced you to a brand new product in the making, Glideware . At that point, the company was only in it's beginning stages. Now, only a year later, Glideware has grown leaps and bounds. After an extremely successful Kickstarter campaign, Glideware was able to raise the funds needed to get their product into production and into the hands of the consumer. Recently, Glideware has been showcased in Kitchen and Bath Design News Magazine, listed as one of their creative storage solutions. Glideware was also featured in Builder Magazine and even Bob Vila listed it as one of 10 New Kitchen Products to Make Your Life Better! And I will tell you from experience, that this product does in fact make your life better! Seriously. Look at how I stored my pans in my Pre-Glideware days. How sad. And now? I can access my pans with ease. And yes, those are CAST IRON pans. I wasn't sure at first if this product would hold my heavy duty cast iron collection, bu...

This week is going to be fun! Just wanted to clue you in to some of the goodies I have in store for you this week! - $200 Amazon Gift Card Giveaway - An Easy Pots and Pans Storage Solution - Two Children's Book Reviews - First Day of School Ramblings And more! Stay tuned for an exciting and busy week! Not only am I starting school with the kids this week but I'll be busy on the blog as well, hope you enjoy!!!